Bartlett man receives 17 years for string of armed robberies

A 20-year-old Bartlett man pleaded guilty Monday to using a bludgeon to rob gas stations in Streamwood and Roselle last year.

In exchange for his guilty plea to two counts of armed robbery and one count of attempted armed robbery, Pawel Szymulewski, of the 200 block of Burton Drive, was sentenced to 17 years in prison by Cook County Judge Ellen Mandletort, who gave him credit for the 568 days he has spent in custody.

Szymulewski must complete at least 50 percent of his sentence before he is eligible for parole.

Late on March 3, 2012, Szymulewski entered a Mobile gas station located at Schaumburg Road and Route 59 in Streamwood and ordered the cashier to turn over money and property, said Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Mike Gerber.

Szymulewski fled in a car driven by his cousin, Patryk Karaluch, 19, who pleaded guilty to armed robbery charges last week. In exchange for Karaluch's plea, Mandletort sentenced him to 11 years in prison.

Szymulewski also pleaded guilty to a May 20, 2012, attempted armed robbery of a Mobil gas station in Roselle. On that occasion, the female cashier refused Szymulewski's demands for money and he fled, Gerber said. That same day, he robbed a Streamwood gas station, making off with $118, a roll of pennies and two cartons of cigarettes, Gerber said.

Szymulewski apologized for his actions.

Mandletort ordered her 17-year sentence to run concurrent with sentences Szymulewski received in DuPage and Kane counties on similar charges. His defense attorney Lisa Lopez said her client recently received a six-year sentence for robbery and a three-year sentence for possession of a stolen motor vehicle in Kane County. He also received a nine-year sentence in DuPage County, Lopez said, although she was not his attorney at the time and did not know the specifics of that case.

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